Drew Pritchard: Scottish works go under the hammer from Salvage Hunters star’s private collection

A Royal coat of Arms of Scotland made by renowned Scottish innovator Walter MacFarlane could fetch £5,000 when it goes up for auction.

The early 20th century coat of arms is from the private collection of antiques expert Drew Pritchard who stars on hit TV show Salvage Hunters.

The Lion Rampant was historically used by the monarchs of the Kingdom of Scotland and later by the monarchs of Great Britain and the United Kingdom. 

It consists of a lion and unicorn aside a quartered shield depicting the three passant lions of England, the harp of Ireland and rampant lion of Scotland, each with crowns and surrounded by fleurs-de-lis. 

It bears the ‘motto Honi soit qui mal y pense’, which translates as: ‘shame on anyone who thinks evil of it’ and ‘Dieu et mon Droit’, which translates as ‘God on my right’.

This particular coat of arms is believed to have been made by the great Scottish innovator, Walter MacFarlane, founder of Glasgow firm W MacFarlane & Co. Ltd.

Macfarlane’s most celebrated work is the Saracen Fountain in Alexandra Park, Glasgow, which they gifted to the city after exhibiting it in the grounds of the 1901 Glasgow International Exhibition.

This important chunk of Scottish history was cast in iron and polychrome and could sell for £5,000 when it goes to auction with Dreweatts.

Also included in the sale is a painting titled The Playhouse Cinema at Leith Walk by Scottish artist Louis Sinclair McNally.

Born in 1963 in Inverkip, Louis attended Grays School of Art and is a regular exhibitor at the RSA, Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts and Paisley Art Institute.

The work offered in the sale will be instantly recognisable to Edinburgh locals. In oil on board, it carries an estimate of £600-£800.

The Playhouse Cinema at Leith Walk. Credit: Dreweatts

The works are among many unusual slices of history to be found in a collection amassed over 30 years by the antiques expert Drew Pritchard.

The sale, which is estimated to fetch over £700,000 comprises approximately 500 lots, which range in estimate from £200 up to £30,000.

‘2023 marked my 30th year in the antiques trade and this collection is a vignette of that work. Anyone who deals in antiques knows it’s all consuming,’ Drew said.

Drew Pritchard: The Collection will take place at Dreweatts on 5 and 6 March.

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